Charles Barkley 'Promises' to Run for Alabama Governor in 2014

It feels like it's been all Charles Barkley all week long (he's been in Playboy, he's lost over a comma gambling), which is fantastic. Almost as fantastic as the idea of him running for governor of Alabama in 2014, which is what he told Wolf Blitzer this afternoon in the CNN Situation Room (Update - Now with video). In fact, Barkley went so far as to point out that he purchased a home in the state last year and that he was going to fulfill all the talk that we have heard about him diving headfirst into politics.

BARKLEY: Well, I just bought a house in 2007. And in 2014, I promise you I'm going to run for governor of Alabama.

Some people begrudge Charles for his willingness to be forthright about basically any issue he that he feels passionate about, but for the most part, people think that Barkley is a charismatic, honest individual that happens to be famous. Both of these opinions develop out of some of the statements that Charles makes while on television, like the following excerpts from the above interview.

BARKLEY: ... Hey, I live in Arizona. I have got great respect for Senator McCain. Great respect. But I don't like the way the Republicans are taking this country. Every time I hear the word "conservative," it makes me sick to my stomach, because they're really just fake Christians, as I call them. That's all they are. But I just -- I'm going to vote Democratic no matter what.

BLITZER: All right. One quick point before I let you go. You used the phrase "fake Christians" for conservatives. Explain what you're talking about.

BARKLEY: Well, I think they -- they want to be judge and jury. Like, I'm for gay marriage. It's none of my business if gay people want to get married. I'm pro-choice. And I think these Christians -- first of all, they're supposed to be -- they're not supposed to judge other people. But they're the most hypocritical judge of people we have in this country. And it bugs the hell out of me. They act like their [sic] Christians. And they're not forgiving at all.

Quasi-humorously, Blitzer ended the interview extremely quickly following the last rant. Which is odd because what Chuck was saying defines great television in the most controversial sense.

Maybe his opinions and political views match up with mine, and maybe they don't. The point is that what makes Charles Barkley a potentially fantastic personality revelation in politics is that he absolutely does not hem and haw.

Sometimes he makes mistakes but he is always brutally honest, and in a political landscape where being vague actually enhances a candidate's appeal, I appreciate his blunt-object-to-the-face style of rhetoric.